Recent talk in my writer’s group: one of us is in the throes of self-publishing and was filling us in on some of the trials and tribulations she was enduring. Currently, her chief complaint is that the route she’s chosen to follow does not provide her with a “proof copy” for checking prior to final go-ahead before printing the number of copies she requires.
What has really stunned her however is that her complaints to a writer acquaintance elicited the response, “What on earth do you want a proof copy for?”
We, too, were stunned at this response and began to quote examples, from our own experience, of how essential it is to proofread the “final copy” of any work. Lest you are tempted to feel the same way, let me list a few that we came up with:
1. Numbering on the table of contents page was not in line with the actual page number of each chapter in the body of the work.
2. Words, phrases and even complete slabs of print omitted or relocated.
3. Pages printed upside down or reversed.
Bottom line is – you can’t trust technology!
With the best will in the world, mistakes happen, glitches, hiccups, whatever you want to call them, occur in the best regulated circles so everything has to be checked. And rechecked!
Sometimes it is simply a small step in the process has been overlooked by the author. This was what had happened in #1. above: she’d neglected to send her file as a PDF. So easily done!!
But not always – the machine itself (maybe its human operator) can have a bad day and stuff things up by accident.
Perhaps the classic in this last was one involving my brother. He writes and self-publishes technical books and was somewhat diverted on receiving the proof copy of his latest effort. The cover looked great. But the book itself was quite a bit thicker than he’d expected. Opening it up revealed, not the words he’d labored over but the complete text of a romantic novel – a genre he never read, let alone ever wanted to write.
Imagine the waste if he’d by-passed requiring a proof copy and had simply taken delivery of the couple of hundred copies he expected to sell.
Comment from IS Administrator: Same company, different result. About the same time that the fellow above-mentioned author had published their book and had trouble having a proof copy delivered, I had published The T-Team with Mr. B. No problem having a proof copy delivered as you can see from the photo above. Had the publishing company’s policies changed in a matter of days? Or was something else going on?
Fellow authors, I invite you to share your experiences on publishing and having your books printed. Let us know in the comment box below.
The spark of the idea for an Indie Writers’ collective came out of belonging to Marion Art Group; a group of painters who meet together every Monday morning and exhibit their works in shopping centres.
With that premise, I thought, ‘Why not draw together a group of writers who help each other, with their different gifts and talents to publish their books?’
Fellow MAG artist, Elsie King thought this was a great idea and with Mary McDee, Indie Scriptorium was born.
Currently, Marion Art Group is holding an exhibition at Brighton Central (Foodland) in the mall area. If you are in Adelaide, South Australia, come and have a look. The exhibition is on for another week until October 29, 2023.
So, on that note, I have included below a story of the beginnings of my journey with art which combines with my love of Central Australia.
Mount Hermannsburg
My father and I sat in the dry river bed of the Finke River painting Mt Hermannsburg which towered above the river gums and spinifex. We painted our muse on site; Dad painted in watercolour and I painted in acrylic.
After a couple of hours, Dad packed up his brushes and palette and returned to the town of Hermannsburg. I stayed, in the creative zone, dibbing and dabbing, the setting sun casting shadows over the river bed and a cool breeze pricking me with goose bumps on my bare arms.
I made the final touches as the sun sank below the horizon and I was called in for tea. I signed with my maiden name, naturally, as I was only 18.
Dad’s painting and mine sat side by side on our host’s piano where all who saw, admired our work. I kept walking past and gazing at my painting. Did I really do this? Wow! Did I really?
I’ve always thought of anthologies as books of short stories and poems put together by writers’ groups as a fun and interesting exercise. A way to get your work into a book format that can be sold at low cost to family and friends and maybe raise funds for the group or for a charity.
I recently entered a competition with the Romance Writers of Australia (RWA) and the prize was being included in the Sweet Treats anthology Lollipop. I was short listed and my story The Houdini Lollipop was included. It was fabulous encouragement, a learning experience and wonderful publicity. It was great to be published with other romance authors but the proceeds the anthology raised were used for the organisation.
Ebony contends, and with lots of evidence, that anthologies don’t only make money for the authors included, they can also be listed on best-sellers lists and get the attention and publicity that all authors need in order for their work to get into the hands of readers.
I won’t go through the steps Ebony suggests in her book, it would be better for readers to purchase her book and use it as a reference. But I will go through some of the advantages and disadvantages of the process and some things to consider when deciding to put together an anthology.
Before setting up an anthology you will need to consider what sort of anthology you want to produce. Anthologies can include short stories, novellas, poetry or even non-fiction articles but the first thing to think if you are putting the anthology into the marketplace is who is your targeted audience. Readers like anthologies with a consistent content, whether that’s all historical, crime, romance, fantasy science fiction or poetry. Ebony also suggests similar heat levels (sweet or erotic) and a consistent type of content. This makes advertising easier and you won’t shock a reader who expects an anthology full of sweet love stories and finds one or more stories with erotic or horror themes. A full study of what is popular and what is selling is important. Google ‘popular anthology books’ to get an idea of what is out there. The most important issue is that all the included writers must do their bit and contribute equally to the project. Ebony suggests a contract clearly stating the terms and obligations required.
Advantages
You can make money.
You will get your work published.
It may help you get your name into a new genre.
You have a given theme/subject.
Writing novellas and short stories can be easier than a full-length novel.
You can learn a lot about publishing and marketing in a group experience.
It could be fun.
Disadvantages
It does require good organisation.
You will need to ensure all members contribute their time equally even if their skills differ.
Contributors do have to “buy in” to the anthology, which means you pay to cover costs such as the cover design, formatting, marketing, advertising etc.
The organiser will have to work out the steps of producing the anthology and ensure they are carried out professionally.
Anthologies often take 2-3 years to put together.
The group may have to learn about taxes and royalties and sort out the finances before proceeding.
If you don’t want to organise your own anthology many are advertised on-line. Romance writers have an advantage as there is a dedicated Facebook group: Australian Romance Anthology Connection. Other genre’s may require some internet searches to find what is on offer.
Writers organisations also provide information about anthologies and many competitions will include your work in an anthology. Try browsing through the Writers SA website under competitions and opportunities, and have a look at other writers centres interstate or overseas.
Following Lee-Anne’s blog last week I realise there are a couple of extra points to be made in relation to this thorny issue of others being upset by something we have written. These are points of a more general nature however.
Memoir is probably a simpler issue: you yourself as the writer are recording events from your own point of view. Yes, there are others involved but you can run your work passed them prior to publication to seek approval or come to an agreement re any changes or omissions that seem to be either necessary or kind and considerate.
As I see it, the real problem comes if you have chosen to write family history. All families have skeletons in their cupboards. Some don’t care a fig if and when these skeletons are dragged out and aired; others can be hugely embarrassed, distressed, humiliated… Basic common decency and respect for others means that these concerns must be dealt with carefully and caringly.
By way of example let me tell you about my own family where there were a couple of babies born “out of wedlock” back when such things were not acceptable in most circles.
One was born in the 1930s and on the chart of the family tree her name was underlined; the only one that was. My brother and I were intrigued and asked questions. We were told that even though it looked like she was the youngest of a number of siblings that underline indicated her birth mother was in fact her eldest “sister” and the people she regarded as her parents were actually her grandparents.
All this was well known in the large family she was born into but never held against either lass. Both were much loved and treasured family members who always belonged regardless of what any neighbours might say or think. As this was a couple of generations ahead of us it was ancient history and never mentioned when we were being regaled with stories of the doings and peccadillos of our forebears – not because it was shameful; simply because it was no longer relevant.
By way of contrast, the same situation took place on the other side of my family but was treated very differently. To be fair, this occurred back in the late 19th century in a very conventional Methodist family. Currently, most of the family could not care less at the present time but the branch descended from that wayward one still feel shamed and humiliated and, while happy to be included in the family history, were guarded and most reluctant to supply certain details.
When we write history, it is important to present the facts. This is obvious. What is often not so obvious is that we can so easily present those “facts” from a current, 21st century perspective and thus unconsciously skew them somewhat. The values, ethics and attitudes to morality can be (and often are!) very different today from what they were fifty, one hundred or even more years ago.
If you are torn between producing an historically accurate record or one that does not cause distress to others might we suggest one way out of the dilemma is to produce a text that pleases all but then also quietly write a sort of addendum stating the “truth” of the bits that had to be omitted or glossed over; put it in a sealed envelope marked “not to be opened till twenty (or fifty if you prefer!) years after my death”. Lodge it with your lawyer or in a strong box in a bank or with a highly trustworthy family member.
When I first mooted (last century) to author a story of our adventure in Central Australia in 1977, Dad told me, “No! You’ll upset people.”
So, I waited decades, then wrote a private copy for my dad. Dad was appreciative but thought our safari adventures in 1981 would be more entertaining. Hence the creation of my travel memoir, Trekking with the T-Team: Central Australian Safari 1981.
The 1977 pilgrimage to the Centre languished in the draw for another decade, until enough time had passed to hopefully not offend people, and it had morphed into a historical travel “faction”; a story based on real events, some real people and others made up. In fact, before publishing my latest book, The T-Team with Mr. B: Central Australian Safari 1977, I included a disclaimer to that effect.
Why all the drama?
You see, as we know in life, an individual’s image of themselves, their reputation is important to them. Their reputation, social status, and what others think of them is vital for their survival and advancement in society.
With this in mind, you could wonder how accurate is history? Especially as individuals and cohorts of high status must maintain their reputations to keep that high status. I mean surely kings have never been murderers, leaders been despots, sports and movie icons immoral.
Have they?
I wonder…
Meanwhile, certain internet platforms are full of happy, well-adjusted individuals with thousands of friends.
Anyway, that being said, it’s not just these days that people have put their best face forward and hide their proverbial skeletons in cupboards. I confess that there are bony “proverbials” in our family history—locked away, key lost…
An elderly relative told me that I couldn’t put my missionary great-grandmother’s letters relating to her Caesarean birth experience in the Cameroon Africa in 1899 into the Lutheran Archives. Too personal, she said. Somehow, they are there now.
If my great-grandmother’s birth experience is too sensitive for some, imagine the real spicy skeletons that exist in families. Again, in our family, those fascinating stories have been leaked by enterprising characters who have written about them and published the works, these being limited publications such as family histories, part of a research study or as a theological study in one case. With the theological study book, we were told plainly, we were forbidden to read that book. Heaven help us if we developed sympathy for the good doctor with a problem with alcohol addiction. I read the book and found it fascinating and encouraging as it revealed in a very real and practical way, God’s love and grace for his broken people.
So, here I am thinking, just the type of stories the rest of the world would be interested in. Stories with grit, guts and depth. Stories that can change our thinking. Help grow us to be better people. Yet, because of an individual’s or community’s sensitivities and threat to their individual or collective reputations, these life-experiences remain ethereal, talked about in whispered tones around the dinner table after a few drinks, or when reminiscing the past with elderly relatives.
Well, that’s my family.
On the other side, there are writers who have no inhibitions when it comes to publishing juicy details on their family’s or friends’ misfortunes and unfortunate life-choices. They change the names, add spicy details of their own creation (just to give a little “kick”), and on they go to entertain their readership. Nothing like those skeletons to fire up the imagination. My eyes widen as one tells me about their friends or family they’ve included (without their knowledge) in the latest novel. I muse how common this modus operandi of writing is.
However, the rest of us, especially in Indie Scriptorium are sensitive to the feelings of family, friends and associates, and have shrouded our characters’ real-life identities in history, Science fiction, fantasy, as well as conglomerating them with several people we know while at the same time veiling the situations to disguise them. That way, no one gets offended or takes us to court…hopefully. As I mentioned, disclaimers about characters not resembling anyone in real life help.
So, I bring this missive to it’s conclusion, for now; our life’s journey, the people we meet, the people we from whom we are descended, the choices we make and the consequences that come from those choices, all enrich our lives and creativity with the stories they generate. And the skeletons in the cupboard also have stories to tell. In whatever way we decide to tell those secret spicy stories, whether as history or fiction, true characters or disguised ones, you never know, it may be those stories that will have influence for good and growth for the reader.
What do you think? Let us know in the comments below.
“You should serialise your books,” a friend said, showing me her latest e-reader. “Once you have finished the book, you can publish it. That’s what some of the authors I read do.”
And my friend reads constantly. You could say she’s attached to her e-reader.
Voila! Kindle Vella popped up as an option.
I looked into this enterprising option.
No go. Unless you live in the USA.
A suggestion at the bottom of the website I had been researching about Kindle Vella suggested a story platform called Wattpad. Wattpad seemed to embrace all those of the universe left out of the US Kindle Vella orbit.
Looked promising.
Further investigation revealed Wattpad was one of the top platforms for reading and writing stories. Millions of stories free. Writers could upload their stories, chapter by chapter, week by week in serial form. An added bonus was that they had an opportunity to receive feedback from their readers.
To me it looked like one big world-wide writers’ group.
Wattpad touted that its Artificial Intelligence (AI) searches with its algorithms, finding books of promise which it then highlights to readers. So, rather than rely on a bunch of readers to raise your story’s profile, as the rest of the World Wide Web does, Wattpad’s “robot” agents do the job.
They, I mean, I guess it’s their AI, will act as an “agent” and Wattpad puts out the “carrot” for aspiring authors that their book may be picked up by major publishing houses and film makers.
Right, let’s get to it.
Full of hopefulness and anticipation for some Beta readers, I launched the first chapter of my novel Diamonds in the Cave on Wattpad. Not sure about the AI but decided to try out the platform as a test case. After all, there seemed to be a healthy cohort of readership for Sci-fi.
Oops! Downsides.
On further investigation, I discovered that Wattpad is geared towards Millennials and Gen Z’s. Upside if you are in that cohort. But if you are not…well…um…
Suddenly, I felt like an old chook trying to sneak into a trendy (or whatever word my children use) nightclub.
Faced with this dilemma, I asked my younger musician son, if I could sneak in using his identity. No, not a good idea. I was afraid that Wattpad might have AI bouncers, who, upon seeing my ancient, in their terms, age, would kick me off the platform.
I applied and that didn’t happen. I was comforted to read that Margaret Attwood is on Wattpad. I will be following her.
Success, of sorts
So, this “old chook”, me, has entered the realm of Wattpad, under the guise of Tessa Trudinger. Funny story about that. When I tried to register under my real name, they, the AI refused to accept me. Hence, I resorted to my maiden name, “Trudinger” and they received me with much enthusiasm saying, “Welcome Home, Trudinger”. Perhaps Trudinger is a hip name in Wattpad world. Fortunately, I had already assigned my nom de plume, Tessa Trudinger, to my detective series which I am currently working on.
Anyway, a few days in, and the first chapter of Diamonds in the Cave steadily gained attention. Wattpad AI was pleased and awarded it the ranking #193 out of 31.6K in “Spiritual”. And something like #278 out of 44.6K in Dystopian. Two days later the story was still in the top 600 in those two categories.
*[Photo 2: Oh, joy! The statistics on Wattpad]
From there, things went south.
As I said, I’m looking for Beta readers and feedback to improve my story. No comments have appeared on Wattpad. One WordPress reader gave me encouraging feedback, saying I write beautifully. Another reader who has followed me, my friend actually, gave feedback face to face. She suggested that I need more of a “hook” in the first paragraph and that it must be rewritten.
Upon that advice, I rejigged the first paragraph, bringing elements of what the story promises to deliver—a combination of chocolate laced with time/space transporting microbes and the fearful Wend community, driven to witch hunts.
May have to eat more chocolates and play around with the first para some more in the future…
As for navigating the Wattpad website, I’m still getting used to the way Wattpad works. Uploading the story is simple enough; much like I do on WordPress. Copy and paste what I have already written on a Word document. An important strategy as I read in reviews about Wattpad taht quite a number of writers have lost their work by relying solely on Wattpad. One note, though, make sure track changes are off and not showing, or they show through on Wattpad. Messy.
I also found the story notes app provided useful in consolidating characters, the story and pitch. It made me think about my protagonist, Minna, and ensure her character remains consistent and yet grows in maturity and depth. I used the “logline” that I was asked to construct (had to be less than 150 characters), as a lead into Diamonds in the Cave on my WordPress blog.
Reading tips
I began reading a couple of stories on Wattpad. However, I discovered, when I tried to go back to them, they had vanished. Solution: apart from writing down the author’s name and book title on a separate piece of paper, I found that I could follow the authors, and put their books into my “Library” on Wattpad.
Another problem with reading in Wattpad—no bookmarks. Again, trusty old pen and paper come to the rescue. In this respect Kindle is far superior. It has bookmarks.
When I work out how to give Wattpad feedback, I will suggest that they programme some in. I checked the box volunteering to be a “Beta-user”.
This is my story of my journey into Wattpad, so far. Check out Diamonds in the Cave on Wattpad, and please do give some constructive feedback. I don’t mind if you post your comments on WordPress, Facebook, or on Wattpad.
You may need to join up on Wattpad to read, follow or comment on stories there. Not such a scary thing, I’ve done it. Just think of the millions of free stories begging for attention.
Maybe, like my friend, then, the e-reader will always be by your side.
Self-publishing a book is a wonderful goal but it certainly isn’t the end of the road. The book does not get into the hands of readers without marketing.
So, how do you get your book noticed, bought and read?
I read somewhere that the best form of marketing is to write the next book. That makes a lot of sense to me as the release of the second book, anthology or short story draws attention to what you have written before.
The business of marketing can take up a lot of time and attention and it’s difficult to get through all the steps you need to market your work and still have time for the joy of writing the next book/story.
This blog will explain my strategy for my own modest marketing plan:
What is your goal?
If you are like me my primary goal was to have a novel published. I don’t need a liveable income from writing. I don’t expect to be a best seller and if I cover some of my expenses I will be happy. So, my marketing strategy was modest and relied on word of mouth and the generosity of friends and family to buy my book and spread the word. If you have given up your day job and have the rent or mortgage due, you will need a much more vigorous marketing plan.
The basic essentials that I used are:
Business cards with an e-mail address and web site address. You can add your phone numbers and address if you choose.
A website that is connected to your social media accounts and where you can post covers of your books and have links to the sites that sell your book. Then tell everyone possible that you have a website and ask them to visit.
Do regular blogs on your web site and post to social media.
Organise a launch party. My release coincided with a big birthday so I invited guests and asked that, in lieu of presents they buy a copy of my book. I then ordered 35 author copies of the book and sold them to friends and family. I sold 34 books with promises of online orders too.
I’m a member of Romance Writers of Australia so will take five copies of my books to the 2023 Sydney conference and put them on the Indie table for sale along with my business cards and a free card (A giveaway displaying my artwork)
I have advertised my novel on the RWA website and in their magazine Hearts Talk.
I paint as well as write so put my business cards of the back of my paintings
Copies of my paintings have been made into cards and my website address is on the back of the card next to the copyright.
Indie Scriptorium web site also advertises my books. I and my fellow members write regular blogs about the self-publishing process. We have a small but increasing following and go world-wide. My website is linked to the Indie Scriptorium website.
Indie Scriptorium will launch a book of our accumulated blogs about self-publishing as well as an anthology of writing, poems, artwork and photograph early next year. Our individual novels and books will be included in this launch.
My fellow writers in IS plan to get a display table of art, cards, books and other advertising at local craft markets.
I intend to contact local writers groups and offer to give an information session about the process of self-publishing my book. Hopefully sell a few books too.
That’s the plan for now. I intend to review my sales strategy from time to time but now I’m going to start writing my third novel.
The process of formatting and uploading a book using publishing platforms is complex and time consuming. Give yourself plenty of time, a comfortable workstation, snacks, drinks and learn some mindful breathing. You will need all of these things to stay sane. *
As discussed on my last blog there are a lot of online publishers out there so do your homework and work out where you want to place your book. I decided to use Draft2digital as they offered a free formatting program that looked good and they distributed to a wide variety of bookstores. I also decided to publish with Amazon as they have the biggest world market and higher royalties.
From my experience I would suggest the following steps.
Get your book cover in a downloadable PDF format for your e-book and a complete cover for your paperback. These need to be ready and fit the criteria of whichever platform you choose. I used the services of a graphic designer Kate Smallwood (https://www.deviouscat.com.au) but as stated in my previous blog on covers you can do your own cover or buy a ready-made, but unique pre-made cover
In Australia we buy ISBNs from Thorpe-Bowker. You will need time to set up your account and go through the questionnaire giving the details of your book. I bought a block of ten ISBNs for $80AUD and had to register as a new publisher cost $50AUD + GST. Total cost $143AUD. You will need a separate ISBN for each format of your book. Draft2digital and Amazon will provide you with a free ISBN, but I chose to have my own. When you get your numbers make sure you record them and keep them in a safe place. I did a table which set out the ISBN, the title of the book, book format and dates of publication as it helped me sort out which ISBN went with which copy of the book.
Once you have an ISBN you can register your book with the National Library of Australia. This is a legal requirement and again you will need some time to fill out the online forms. You only need to register one format of your book.
Do a final format of your word manuscript. Make sure that chapters are obvious and separated from text by paragraph spacing and clearly set out scene breaks. I used the formatting show/hide device on the home page of word. (Looks like a backward P) This clearly shows your spacing and page breaks. Ensure that all chapters and scene breaks have consistent spacing. This will make it easier to load your book onto the publishing platform.
Draft2digital – You will need to start an account with them, provide banking details and fill out a USA tax form. These are all available in the account section. Draft2digital also have a range of You-tube videos. The masterclass tutorials are excellent and they provide a lot of advice on the website.
Draft2digital have an automated system that will download an author bio, dedication page, copyright page, list of contents as well as the blurb for the back cover. I tried these out but found the information was basic and not in my style. I chose to add my own internal pages along with my manuscript and didn’t have too many problems with the download.
Once downloaded onto the platform it’s a matter of working through the steps for each format (E-book, Print book, Hardcover or Audio book). Step 1 allows you to upload your manuscript. You will probably do this multiple times as you cannot edit once your manuscript is in the system. You will need to edit and then reload the file. Step 1 will also ask you for a Description- this is actually the information that goes on your back cover such as a blurb so have this ready. You can also choose your release, and pre-release date but do this carefully as it is essential to have your book ready to go by the release date. Step 2 is the layout where you decide if you want Draft2digital to add your internal pages or you do it yourself. I found it easier to use my own pages but try out their system and see if it suits you. It also gives you a list of your chapters. If they don’t match your manuscript you will need to check on the formatting of your uploaded file and make amendments. Step 3 is the Preview, the fun bit where you can play with a variety of internal finishes which decorate your chapters and scene breaks. I was very happy with their selection of styles. After you select your style you will need to check each page of your novel carefully to ensure that everything is exactly as you want it. Changes can be made after you publish but can cost money. Step 4 is to publish. You can choose which platforms your book will go to and the prices of your book. You can change the prices for different countries and see what royalties you can expect. Once published you can order a proof copy which is exciting. The proof copy can take a few days to weeks to arrive and mine cost me $43AUD dollars but it arrived within four days. Carefully read the proof copy and if possible, get a friend or editor to go through it. Give yourself plenty of time to check and double check your book before publishing.
Draft2digital also allow you to use their formatting for free and download a copy of your formatted book to use on other platforms. A very generous offer for authors which needs acknowledging.
If you also decide to go with Amazon you need to create an account in Kindle Create. The process is similar to Draft2digital. Check out the terms and conditions from Amazon carefully. If you select Kindle Direct you must be exclusive to Amazon for 90 days but it is a good way to get your book read. Amazon is the biggest online publisher and it is worthwhile to use their service as they also provide a proof copy at a cheaper price.
Once you have published your book you will receive a Universal Book Link from Draft2digital and an Amazon URL. These are important links that you use when you start marketing your books. The Amazon URL is tricky to find but I used a You-tube video and finally worked it out. Copy and save these book links to a secure folder where you can access them easily. They can go onto social media and be added to web sites.
As I said at the beginning of this post, the process of getting a book ready for publishing is long and hard. I found the actual publishing difficult and sometimes confusing. I was lucky to have the help of Lee-Anne Kling from Indie Scriptorium who has published multiple books and spent many hours holding my hand and giving advice. I went through the process to find out for myself how difficult it is for someone who is not tech savvy and struggles with computer programs. I did it with a lot of help so it is doable. I hope my experience is helpful to other authors who want to do it for themselves.
Formatting is getting your manuscript ready for a publisher to go to print. If you are going with a traditional publisher, it is still advisable to format your manuscript, so it is set out like a book, made easy to read to stand out from the slush crowd.
I have outlined the various formatting programs available to try.
Word Formatting
I have used Word to format two novels and a short story for competitions with Romance Writers of Australia. I found the process was time consuming and you have to be pedantic but I, and many authors use Word to format their books.
Below is a list of requirements that were required for a story in the RWA anthology.
My experience showed that consistency is essential. I have listed the main points.
Have a consistent font and size.
Make sure your computer is set for Australian English or whatever region you choose.
Make sure your quotation marks are consistent. Either all single or all double.
Em dash — and ellipsis … don’t have full stops after them and need to be consistent.
Use italics for inner thoughts throughout.
Either don’t use or use full stops for salutations throughout. Mr. or Mr but not a mix of both.
Have consistent spacing between lines.
Use centred scene breaks. You can use *** or ~*~ but check on the requirements of the publishing platform.
Use one or two spaces between sentences throughout your manuscript.
Use the find and replace function to check on things like spacing at the end of a paragraph or mistakes in your typing. Select the entire manuscript and go to home/replace and type ^p in the find field, then type ^ p in the replace field and click on replace all. It will let you know if there are any changes.
Delete all tab indents. Select the entire manuscript and go to Layout, Paragraph, Tabs and change the default tab stop to 0cm and click on clear all and select OK.
Then indent all paragraphs to a set amount, usually 0.5cm for novels. Do not use tabs or the space bar as this can cause problems with downloading your document.
Check that your line breaks are consistent by highlighting the document and then use the find and replace window. In Find enter ^l (lowercase L) and click on replace all. (^ is found in the functions key on the keyboard)
I found formatting with Word was doable but required time and careful instructions to make it work. There are other options.
Kindle Create
Kindle Direct Publishing provide a free program, Kindle Create to assist indie authors upload to KDP (Amazon). They have a tutorial which allows you to play with Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice and learn how to use the program. Download and install the tool and then you can practice. You need a cover to use this program and they also advise you use an index to make navigating the manuscript easier for the reader.
Draft2Digital
As discussed in a previous blog Draft2digital is a publisher who can distribute your books to many book stores online. They will publish your e-book and paperback and they also offer a free book formatting service and they don’t insist that you use them as the distributer. They also have good tutorials so you can try out the program before you download your own book. Unfortunately, they also need a completed cover. (I used a draft cover)
You will need an account with D2d. It’s important to fill out everything in your account, particularly the tax form and payment system. You can review your bio page and edit it in account.
Uploading your manuscript into the formatting program is tricky. D2d can do your meta data such as dedications, copyright page and others, but it might not be what you want. Also be sure to put your release date in advance unless you intend to publish immediately.
Before downloading your word MS document to D2d make sure all your spacing for chapter headings, scene breaks and other inclusions are consistent. This helps with the formatting download.
You cannot edit once D2d downloads the MS. If you need to make changes you have to edit the word MS and then upload it to D2d again. I did this multiple times until I got the formatting right. It’s tricky.
Vellum and Atticus
These formatting programs are very popular with indie authors as they are easy to use. They are not a cheap option. Vellum, which is only for MAC users will cost about $380 in Australian dollars ($250 US) while Atticus is for Android PC’s and is about ($150 US).
It is probably worth buying if you intend to publish many books.
Good Luck – I will discuss the download and publishing in my next blog.
In Adelaide we live in the driest state in the driest continent. (Inhabited, I mean.) Technically, Antarctica receives the least amount of rain, but, it is not exactly inhabited except for several hundred scientists from various countries.
Analytics
Anyway, back to dry, old Adelaide. There have been times when rain is scarce, and in some parts of the state of South Australia, past the Goyder line, rainfall per year averages less than 200 millimetres. Hence, when there is rain on our fair city, there are a number of us in the population who like to measure how much rain we have had. So far, this last month, since I bought a rain gauge, we have received 60 millimetres. Great times for our farmers.
You could look at “analytics” as you would a rain gauge, especially if you are an indie author.
Reports
Perhaps you have a book on the Amazon virtual shelves. You venture from the safe and comfortable “bookshelf” page and click on the ominous “Reports”.
If you had done this when you first published your book, you may have been delighted to see the graph sprouting columns/bars or a line rising above the base indicating you have made some sales. Naturally, you would have sold your book to friends and family to generate these sales.
*[Screen Shot 1: Amazon Reports—Bar chart of sales]*[Screen shot 2: Amazon Reports—Line chart of sales]
But then, a few weeks along, or months, and that graph has flatlined. Sigh! That line, as flat as the proverbial Australian desert and dry as an empty rain gauge in that desert. You have entered the “Goyder” zone of sales. You wonder what has gone wrong. Is it them? Or is it me? you ask.
In my experience, when the book sales flatline, nothing picks it up like a free promotion. Yes, you guessed it, giveaways. For example, Amazon allows free promotion for each book every three months. Free means no royalties, but is a cheap and easy way to advertise your book. People like free giveaways; they are like seagulls after chips. There’s nothing like that fuzzy feeling that someone out there has considered your book worthy to download to their Kindle to read…sometime…hopefully. Another upside is that your book’s ranking increases. 1st is tops, most popular, whereas 15 000 000th is not so…well, you get the picture.
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*[Screen shot 3: Ranking]
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The downside of free promotion is that probably the readers download your book but never get around to reading it. They collect all the freebies, because they are free. Also, if readers download your free promotion book and actually get to read it, they can’t actually review it, either by rating it, or comment.
Comments and Ratings
There’s a belief out there in Indie publishing world that positive comments and five-star ratings beget sales, which gives birth to a higher ranking. A higher ranking on the virtual bookshelf produces more sales. For this reason, and to discourage “vote-stacking” by big-name or not-so-big-name but savvy publishers who use their computer algorithms and fake identities to generate comments and ratings, Amazon has strict criteria for who gets to rate and comment. Let’s just say an episode of a popular ’90’s sitcom concerning soup and the person dolling out the soup, comes to mind. So, if you are fortunate enough to get some comments and ratings, thank your random unrelated reader for taking the time to appreciate your book and share their feedback about your work.
I encourage you who read our Indie Scriptorium team’s current and future books, to share your helpful and positive feedback of our books on the Indie Scriptorium website. Or you might like to visit our personal websites, to share your thoughts on our work.
Feedback is Feedback
Although you may not get much feedback on your Platform of choice book page, analytics of how the sales are faring, can help you track how your book promotion is tracking. Remember that once you release your book for publication, you need to promote your book and advertise. A book doesn’t sell itself.
The analytics may indicate your in a sales-drought. Flatline. Nothing happening. Don’t be discouraged. Be proactive. Look at ways you can promote your book. Advertising, free-promotion, taking advantage of the resources available, and consistently give your book a plug on your blog or social media platform.
On the other hand, hooray! You’ve had some sales. Make the most of the higher ranking, and as the farmers do when they have good rain, they plant seeds. Again, hook more readers through your blog posts or invest in more advertising.
Special Priority Programmes (like Amazon’s KENP)
KENP—Kindle Edition Normalized Pages, is a programme exclusive to Amazon. If you opt for this programme you need to be exclusive to Amazon and not use other platforms to sell the kindle-version of your book. In this programme, a reader, who is a Prime member, meaning that they subscribe to Amazon for certain benefits such as Kindle Lending Library, can read any book in the programme for free. The advantage is that the author gets paid for every page the reader reads.
To see how your book is tracking on KENP, you can click on the KENP button on your report page and check out how many pages have been read. The Amazon report page will indicate if any KENP pages have been read.
*[Screen shot 4: KENP pages count]
What I have discovered recently is that as someone reads on KENP, the ranking of the chosen book improves, meaning potentially more readers, more sales.
Main Takeaway
What I hope you have gleaned from this gazing into analytics is that reporting on your sales may look scary. It may look discouraging if there are not many sales. But what I encourage you to do is have a go, click on your chosen platform’s “Reports” or “Analytics”, explore and get familiar with the graphs and information. Regularly check out how your book is faring in sales-world. I mean, a farmer regularly checks the rain gauge, the barometer and soil samples to improve productivity. The same is true of an author. Analytics is a tool. Use it.
Indie Scriptorium -- Self Publishing Collective 